Teachers’ Day: Many city schools can’t screen Modi address on same day

While Union Human Resource Development (HRD) minister Smriti Irani has said that the participation of schools and students to watch Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s upcoming Teachers’ Day address live was “voluntary” and not compulsory, schools across Mumbai are busy chalking out plans to screen the same.

Schools across the country had been directed to make arrangements to screen the address by the Centre. The Maharashtra government had also, in a separate circular, directed the deputy director of school education to screen the speech live.

Most schools, however, claim they are yet to receive any notification from the state.

The Maharashtra State Secondary and Higher Secondary School Principals’ Association, meanwhile, has written to the state education department, asking it to issue an official notification over the screening of the PM’s speech. According to them, schools are clueless whether it is compulsory or voluntary.

While some schools say they will be able to screen the address on September 5th itself, several others said they can do so only the next day.

Some schools claim they do not have a place big enough for accommodating all their students together at one time.

Others say they have declared a holiday on Teacher’s Day and hence will screen the address on September 6.

Grace Mathais, principal of Queen Mary school, Byculla

We have not received any official circular yet. Hence we have not decided whether to screen the PM’s address or not. We will wait for an official communication from the education department. Till then, we have no plans of screening the speech.”

Seema Buch, principal of Gudecha Education Academy, Kandivali

We have declared a holiday for students on September 5, so we can take all our teachers for lunch on the occasion of Teachers’ Day. Our Teachers’ Day celebrations will be held on September 4 itself. We have, however, asked our students to watch the PM’s address at home and take down points. We will have a discussion on the same with our students the next day in the school.”

Meera Korde, director of Saraswati Vidyalaya, Thane

Our school is re-opening on September 5 after the Ganesh Chaturthi vacation. We have not received any official circular. Once we get the circular, we will screen it for the students. If not possible on September 5, we will do it the following day.

Gool Ghadiali, principal of Gopal Sharma International School, Powai

It will be difficult to ask all our students to stay back till evening and so we have decided to record it and screen it for them the next day after the school’s assembly.

Ragini Mahajan, principal of Saraswati School, Chembur

In our school we do not have an auditorium or hall big enough to accommodate all our students at one time. Hence, we have decided to record the PM’s speech and screen it in every classroom the next day.